Camblia
by Autumn Eliza Gillespie
Summary: Current Chapter Chapter 2: Aydine takes Alice in and gets her story. He takes some sympathy on her - or at least it seems he does - and he plans a trip across Camblia to the castle. They are going to consult King Nerus! The journey begis...
1. Chapter 1

Maybe if I had stayed awake that night I'd never have left.

Until that November night I was an ordinary seventeen year old girl. Selfish, reckless, confused. And I felt small and powerless, most of all underneath the show.

My parents were out of town for the weekend. I had planned out the party for a month. The alcohol, the guestlist, the music - everything.

I told myself that I'd let everyone else drink, and I'd stay sober to take care of everything if anyone got out of hand. Yeah, like I could stop a bunch of drunks if they ransacked the house.

However, I drank too in the end. After a while I'd had a little too much, and my best friend Aleesha, who hadn't had a lot yet, walked me upstairs to my room. I laid on the bed and watched her lock and shut my door. I closed my eyes.

The room got bright with grey light. Well, somewhat blue tinted. It was like ice, and the room got very cold. Suddenly sober, I sat up.

The room that I had just been in was transformed. I was now in a room with dirty looking wooden flooring with large spaces inbetween the boards. The walls looked like the inside of a log cabin.

Was I high or drunk?

The window was dusty and propped open by a broken broom handle. The bed was unfinished, old looking wood, and the blanket was a patchwork quilt.

I sprang up instantly, and ran over to the worn out looking dresser and wiped some of the dust off the mirror and it revealed me just as I was at the party...the same old Alice. But I was not in my own house.

I hesitated to leave the room but decided that I would have to if I was ever going to get home.

What the hell has happened?! Was this some kind of cruel joke? Did someone move me while I was out of it?

But Aleesha locked my door! Or did she? No, she did.

Well, I wasn't getting answers just standing here...but wait! Could it be a dream?

It was so icy cold in the room, I would never feel that if it weren't real. But I did pinch myself for good measure. No, not a dream.

Well, whatever dangers outside this room I'd have to face. If not, I'd be in this room forever.

I opened the door carefully. To my surprise, it led outside! The small room I was in had been a one-room house!

There was a horse hitched to a post outside. Being a skilled rider with a horse of my own, this was good news. I had done alot of cross country and this horse looked quite athletic and I could probably escape most dangers and move along at a good pace. Perhaps I could find civilization before night.

I stepped out onto the little porch. I made my way down a couple of stairs and stepped across some stepping stones. The horse reguarded me curiously.

Suddenly I wondered if he was broken or not. He would be useless if he wasn't. But there was no way to tell except to get on, and even though it was truely not recommendable for most situations, now qualified as an emergency, right?

He was tall. His withers towered over my head infact. He was a dark, dark color. He was black, but he had a purple sheen in the strange light the clouds was giving off. He was wearing a bridle, so I took it as a good sign he was broken.

I untied him and led him over to a near by stump and aligned him with it. After two attempts I was sitting atop him.

I walked him and trotted him in circles for a few minutes to make sure I wasn't getting myself into something dangerous. He seemed to be responsive and well trained.

I let the reins slack a bit and paused to concider what direction I should ride in. My thoughts were broken by someone yelling.

"Hey you! Get off my horse! Get off! Now!"

A boy with blond hair was running down a grown up path towards the stallion and I.

I gave the horse a good kick in impulse, startled by the boy. Wow, he took off like a rocket! Almost unseating me, I grabbed his mane to regain my seat.

We thundered down the dirt path that seemingly led into nowhere.

But at least that guy wouldn't get us. He'd never run down this stallion. Hell, probably not even in a car! I'd never been this fast on a horse before.

It was thrilling really. I began to enjoy riding the wonderful creature and in turn forgetting that I was being pursued. Blurs of brown and green flashed by my eyes as the stallion lurched foward!

Apparently, the boy had horses I had yet to see. Because before I knew it, the stallion was being pulled to a halt by the blond boy riding on an even larger dappled grey horse.

"Do you mind telling me why you felt the need to steal my horse?" the boy demanded hotly.

"I..." I began. I wasn't quite sure how to explain myself. If I'd known this guy owned the horse I'd have asked first. Or more than likely asked the guy for help!

"Well?" he said impatiently.

"I'm lost," I said lamely.

"And that's why you stole my horse?" he said doubtfully.

"Well, more than lost. I went to sleep on my bed and ended up asleep on the bed in that house. And I went outside and there was this horse and I wanted to try to find someone so I thought if I rode him I'd get around faster," she explained.

"Right. You were trying to find someone, and when you see someone coming, you run like a bat out of hell!" he said raising an eyebrow.

"You scared me!" I exclaimed. "What would you do if someone was running and yelling at you?"

The boy shook his head. "Look girl, I don't know you, and I'm not too fond of you right now either, but if you promise not to try stealing my stallions anymore, I'll try to help you out," he said. "You seem kind of confused."

"I'm sorry," I said. I really needed to get on his good side! After all, it didn't seem that there were any towns close by, and it would sure be a long walk to one without this guy.

We rode back to the house awkwardly silent.

"Could you at least help me put the horses away?" he asked. "It's the least you could do."

"Sure," I said.

"The black one you rode - his name is Cobalt," the boy pointed out. "And this dapple I rode is named Thunderhead."

"They're lovely," I remarked, but the boy's ill mood didn't lighten.

We walked a short way into the woods behind his house and found a stable that was at least six times as large as the boy's house.

"Wow," I said. It was practically enchanted!

As we led the stallions in the barn several beautiful horses of every color known to horses stuck their heads out.

It was enough to take my breath away.

"His stall is the one on the end," the boy said.

I turned the beautiful black horse into his box and latched the door shut.

I petted a few of the beautiful horses and looked around for the boy.

He was standing in front of the barn, so I walked out. He started towards the house without another word.


	2. Chapter 2

Once we were inside he drug a table and two chairs over to the center of the floor.

"So, why are you here?" he said as if it were a simple question.

"I have no idea!"

"Well, you were out of luck running the way you were anyway. The path through the Trivial Mountains is long, and then you still have a way to go before you reach Beacoupe City," he said, and with a sort of smile, added, "And you wouldn't make it far anyway."

"So we're basically in the wilderness?" I said dumbly. He nodded.

"Well, the City of Hope isn't too far from here, but you ran in the opposite direction! And I assume you're from the City of Hope, since I don't see how you could have otherwise gotten here from Nattralli Village, or Beacoupe City. And I don't think you're out of Kheroshetyne Providence," the boy said.

What! Where was this I?

"Well, where is Rosedale?" I asked, trying to be calm, but almost panicking now.

"Rosedale?" he said looking confused. "I've never heard of any Rosedale around here. There is a stretch of enchanted forest named Roseland," he suggested, but then paused and observed me and added, "But you don't look very enchanted. No offense."

I shook my head.

"What's your name?" he asked, in a softer tone.

"Alice," I replied, trying not to start crying.

He smiled a little. "Don't cry, Alice," he said. Obviously, I looked as scared as I was. "My name is Aydine, by the way."

I tried to smile. For the first time now, I observed him. His hair was a bright blond, almost white. It was unevenly chopped around his shoulders, with shaggy bangs pulled off to the side chopped just past his eyes. He had clear, bright green eyes. He was pale, and had thick black hoops through his ears. He wore a ratty looking, long-sleeved navy blue shirt and too small looking light brown pants with mid-calf high fur boots. He wore a necklace with some large animal teeth around his neck. He had a burgundy tinted head band.

This wasn't America. Probably not even planet earth!

I laid my head down on the table.

"Look, I'm sorry for scaring you. But you were stealing one of my favorite horses. You can't much blame me," he pointed out.

"I'm sorry," I said not lifting my head. "I just don't know what I'm going to do."

"Don't worry. We'll get you back to Rosedale," he said in a quiet voice. "In Peak Providence, there are hidden towns. The only place really known is Hidden City," he said. "Maybe Rosedale is a town from there that nobody knows of!"

I shook my head. "No, I'm not even from your country I don't think," I said.

He reguarded me puzzled. "But this country is the only country," he said. "It's Camblia!"

Camblia? There was no such place on earth!

"I'm not even from the same world as you," I said. "I don't know why I'm here, and I don't even know how any of this is possible!"

"Maybe you have amnesia," he suggested. "And you're really from some town in Peak Providence, and you don't know it! Or maybe you're from the City of Hope and don't know it," he said.

"No, no! No amnesia!" I exclaimed thrusting my hands up in the air, frusterated. "I was at my house having a party, and I got tired and went upstairs to sleep, and the last thing I remember was closing my eyes and waking up in your house!"

That was kind of a lie...I was drunk. But I was tired too.

Aydine ran his fingers up and down a split in the wood, worn smooth by probably years of someone doing what Aydine was now. "Perhaps you got caught in some sort of portal," he suggested. "But that would mean Kheroshetyne was involved," he said, more quietly. "And that's not good. If they brought you through, it was for a reason."

"What is Kheroshetyne?" I asked, hesitant.

"It's the dark providence of Camblia," Aydine explained. "Long ago they did not agree with the laws of Camblia set by the royal family, or the tradition and honor that they upheld. So there was a war, and they were driven to a far edge of Camblia. It was a bad piece of land, with a volcano that spewed ash, and every thousand years, erupted. I saw it once," he said. "But that was a long time ago, and I swear I'll never go back there!"

I looked at him deeply in the eyes. He seemed very sincere. nd I had no choice but to trust him.

He continued his story of Kheroshetyne, "Their evil magic cursed them, and caused them to turn into beasts. Wolves of some sort, and they are very large and strong. Their leader is Helaria. She's very wicked, and widely hated among us. She hasn't risen against Camblia in many, many years though. She has lost every war against us! But she is powerful, and is always out seeking the dark powers held by the royal family."

"Dark powers?" I said confused. "If everyone in Camblia is against these dark monsters, then how can Camblia itself be dark?"

"Camblia is a beautiful side of darkness, my dear Alice," Aydine said with a sparkle in his eyes. And when darkness becomes beautiful, it can overcome whatever turns against it."

I smiled. It was so heroic. The way he described it certainly sounded beautiful.

"We must take you to the King," he said, serious now. "They must know you're here. And if it's not Kheroshetyne, at least they might be able to figure out how to return you to Rosedale," he said smiling a bit now. "We must leave right away! Camblia city is where the castle is, and it is an extremely long journey."

When Aydine said right away, I thought he meant the next day. He meant that very moment!

He got up right away and began to pack. He rolled his blanket and opened a chest and pulled out some large sacks and began filling them with clothes, bowls, plates, blankets, pillows, forks, and spoons. He also laid three canteens with the luggage. Then he lifted a floorboard, and took out several knives and daggars in elaborate sheaths.

"They have been in my family for generations," he explained. He removed a small brown sack. "Money for supplies along the way," he explained it.

I helped him take the bags out onto the porch.

We walked around the back of the wooden cabin, and through the woods again to the beautiful stable.

The stallions hung their heads over the doors in greeting. Aydine surveyed them.

"You like Cobalt, don't you?" he asked. I nodded.

"Alright," he said. "you can ride Cobalt."

He opened Cobalts stall door. The stallion strode out majestically and waited patiently for further instruction from his master.

Aydine took out a chestnut stallion with a blaze and four white stockings, and he also took out Thunderhead.

Aydine dug around in his pocket and finally pulled out a tattered piece of paper and a pen.

He scribbled on the paper and placed it on a bench, and used a bridle for paperweight to keep the note from blowing away.

"I've got a friend in the City of Hope who comes this way every night to visit me. He will come to the barn if I'm not in my house, and he'll see the note and feed the horses for as long as we're gone," Aydine explained.

We walked back through the beautiful, summery smelling forest, to the house. The stallions followed us.

Aydine and I loaded our luggage onto the chestnut horse, and bridled Cobalt and Thunderhead.

"What is the chestnut stallion's name?" I asked.

"Ember," Aydine said.

I smiled. "You think of good names for these guys!"

"Thanks," he said, blushing a bit. "Do you need a leg up?" he asked.

"Yes, if you wouldn't mind," I said.

I placed my foot in his hands. "One, two, three!" he said, boosting me up on Cobalt.

He swung up onto Thunderhead easily. "Ready?" I nodded.

We set out at a steady canter along the dirt path that I'd once been down already that day.

The stallions gait was so smooth, I barely felt it.

"Alice, you'll have to be brave," Aydine said. "The Trivial Mountains aren't called that for no reason. There are many dangers in them. But they are worth traveling for many people," he said. "to reach the Bay of Hope. Of course," he added, "I have travelled those mountains so much I doubt they'll hardly be trivial for us."

"What is the Bay of Hope?" I asked.

"Where my house is. It stretches farther though. It's pretty vast. A little larger than the Trivial Mountains. They say the Bay of Hope is a protected place. It is believed that no evil can enter into it's boundaries. I live right on the boundary of the Bay of Hope and the Trivial Mountains. Farther north it is nothing but sand. It is a vast beach with one path through to the City of Hope," he explained.

"Oh," I said. I was beginning to see that this place was mythical, like a fairy tale.

"Everyone comes for a different reason though," Aydine continued. "Some come to travel the Bay of Hope - they say you can never get lost in it. No matter what direction you go you will find something. Either the west Crystal River, or back to the City of Hope, or somethimes the shore of the Seas of Chance, but you will find something. Some go for the City of Hope. Alot of rare gemstones and metals are found there. And of course, they say you can find your destiny there. There is an ancient tree that is said to live in the graveyard. The Tree of Knowledge they call it. If you are true in your intentions and pure of heart, they say it will come alive and speak to you, and tell you your destiny," he said.

"Of course, I've never been to ask the tree my destiny so I don't know if all that is true, but I have heard fabulous stories. Perhaps we might have taken you to the tree, but first we must consult the King," he said seriously.

I was very captured by his story telling of the Bay of Hope, and the Tree of Knowledge. Despite my desparate situation, I wanted to know more about Camblia.

"Aydine," I said. "Can you tell me more about this place?"

He seemed surprised by my interest, but was willing to share information.

"Well, the lands of Camblia are vast. I will tell you about each place as we get to it, but what we are going into is the Trivial Mountains, as I've told you. They have many packs of wolves in them, as well as ravens, vultures, mountain lions, and other meat eating beasts. Not to mention it is a tiresome journey climbing the mountain roads and such. However, I have passed through many times and it has become rare that a beast will try to attack me. I've slain quite a few. And the journey will be easier on horseback. And on the other side is the Seas of Chance. They are exactly what they are called. You will find that the places of this country are named according to what they are most of the time. When you cross that sea, you're gambling a smooth voyage or a very rough one. They say it has alot to do with the Isal Tribe. I've heard that some of the tribe hides in the Sand Forest and uses telescopes to see if there are ships out, and they cast spells. Either way, many go to the Sand Forest in search of buried treasure. There are stories and rumors of men finding chests full of diamonds and gold, amongst many coins. There is a large island called the Sand Forest, and a smaller island directly east that is not named. We just know the very unsocial Isal Tribe resides on the small island. Long ago the Isal tribe compromised with the King and he granted the Isals isolation from the rest of Camblia. Nobody knows why they wanted to be isolated - it's quite a mystery, but they have become hostile. Like they are protecting something. It is strange. Anyway, that is everything behind us. The Bay of Hope is in Protection Providence, and we will soon be leaving that and entering Evapalation Providence when we cross the Heart River and leave Trivial Mountains. There we will be in a very vast field of grass. We will follow the path to Beacoupe City. It is not the only place to visit in the providence but we are trying to make haste, so we will not visit those. At least not right now," he told me.

"Wow," I said. "How many providences are there?"

"Seven," he said, and added, "Well, six. One providence is no longer a part of Camblia," he said his face darkening. "Kheroshetyne."

I nodded. "I'm sure one day Kheroshetyne will be a part of Camblia again and there will be peace."

He smiled. "You're kind, Alice. But I don't see how that will ever be possible."

We rode for a hours, chatting pleasantly, enjoying the afternoon. And for a while it almost felt like I lived there. 


	3. Chapter 3

After what felt like forever, night fell and we stopped at a clearing near the mountain path we had been pursuing.

Aydine unloaded and unbridled the horses and let them nip at some near by grass.

"You hungry?" he asked.

"A little," I replied, watching Cobalt. He was such a wonderful stallion. Back at home he'd be worth at least 50,000. Perhaps more. Maybe 100,000!

Aydine smiled, just a little. "I'm afraid my cooking isn't quite five star. I hope you won't hold it against me."

I smiled and looked over at him now. "Of course not!"

He cooked some beans and toasted a couple of slightly stale rolls. Then he disappeared behind a rock and came back with a bucket full of water.

"This road follows a creek," he explained. "It is the only luxury through the Trivial Mountains though. And some people don't even realize it's there."

He portioned us out equal amounts of beans and we dined on a simple, and somewhat tastey meal of beans and toasted rolls. The water tasted better than any bottled water I'd ever had!

"This water is so much better than the water back home!" I exclaimed. "And your cooking isn't bad at all!"

He blushed. "All water here tastes like this water," he said sounding a little puzzled as to why I liked it so much. "And all of my cooking tastes the same too," he added.

"Our water back home isn't good at all. Everyone litters and pollutes the rivers and oceans, so we end up with dirty, stale tasting water," I said explained, since he seemed to wonder why I liked the water so much.

"Why doesn't your King do something?" Aydine asked, showing interest in me for the first time.

"We don't have a king. Infact, where I'm from there are many countries. Thousands. And the one I live in has a president, and its also a free country. Despite a lot of good things, the president can't do a lot about the pollution. Someone always has an opinion to stop him, and the president isn't like a king...there are a whole bunch of people who have to agree on a law for it to actually take place. It's complicated," I said, somewhat surprised at my lack of ability to describe America.

"That doesn't sound very good," Aydine said thoughtfully.

I shook my head. "It's not."

Now the sun was gone behind the darkened horizon and our only light was the fire.

We sat in silence for a moment. "We should go to bed. We have to get up early and I wouldn't want us being tired all day," he said.

He rolled out a thin matteress type thing, which sort of reminded me of a block of foam.

He bit his lip. "I forgot that I only had one bedroll. You don't mind sharing do you?"

I shook my head.

"I can sleep on the ground, actually. If you don't feel comfortable sharing the bedroll," he offered.

"I will be fine," I said smiling.

He hesitated and shrugged.

"Aydine, its really alright. It's really nice of you to try to help me get home, and I think the least I could do is share a bedroll with you."

He blushed and looked at the ground. "It's nothing."

I couldn't sleep very well at first. I doubted I would fall asleep at all. And I was almost half sure that if I fell asleep I'd wake up in my room again. But I must have fallen asleep eventually, because the next thing I knew, I was being shaken awake by Aydine.

"Huh?" I said as I sat up, somewhat confused.

"Morning," said Aydine. Then I remembered where I was. "I hope you slept alright. Did I make a fine enough pillow?" he said, with a lopsided smile.

I blushed hard. "I'm sorry," I said standing up.

"It's fine," he said rolling his eyes.

The morning passed uneventfully. So far I had yet to see a dangerous animal. Aydine cooked more toasted stale rolls, this time with some jam of a different flavor than I'd ever tasted before, with some rather creamy grits. Unlike the watery things my mom cooked from the paper packs.

I thanked Aydine for cooking, which he brushed off. He filled the three canteens with water from the creek, and we loaded and bridled the horses and set off.

"We're making excellent time," he said. "We may well reach Evapalation Providence by tonight! Usually the journey takes three or four days. Of course, that is done by those who face the trials of these mountains. It's not unusual for me to make this trip in half that," he said, nearly bragging.

I smiled. "Good."

Suddenly Aydine halted. "Shh," he said.

"Go!" he yelled. "And hold on!"

The horses were in a mad race suddenly through the woods. A scream pierced the air.

A mountain lion scrambled down from a ledge above and was in hot pursuit of us!

The horses were going at breakneck pace, but didn't seem to be afraid. It suddenly became apparent to me that these horses weren't even running top speed. They had confidence that they were quick enough to escape him.

After a few minutes the lion gave upthe pursuit and we slowed the horses, who shockingly weren't even breathing hard.

I didn't ask Aydine about it though, I just assumed they were extremely fit.

I however, was quite out of breath. I looked over at Aydine and narrowed my eyes. "Those who face the trials," I said with a smirk. "That includes you I guess."

To my surprise he laughed. "A young mountain lion is hardly a trial," he said with a grin.

A group of ravens and vultures followed us for a while, but left when they realized the lion wasn't going to stalk anymore.

We decided to take advantage of our stolen time, and slow down to a floating trot and enjoy the scenery.

"It's really a gloomy place," I mused aloud. "But it's also beautiful."

Aydine nodded. "Indeed. Most people don't get the chance to take in the beauty of the Trivial mountains because of the battles they face on the way. And many don't make it out at all," he said. "You are very lucky to see it this way."

I smiled. I certainly was. The canopy above us was thick, lush and dark green. Small flickers of sunlight filtered through. The soil on the path was dark and rich. Every now and then the trees would break and we would get a spectacular view of the mountain range.

After about an hour we picked up our pace to a gentle canter. It was not long before we crossed the Heart River, and the landscape seemed to change slightly.

"Its not far now," Aydine said.

I nodded. Now the sun was a bright orange ball, and cast eerie evening shadows among us.

Thirty minutes ride took us to thinner forest and flatter land. Aydine didn't need to tell me we were almost out of the Trivial Mountains.

Finally, just as the sun disappeared behind the horizon, the horses stepped out into a flat, seemingly endless field.

I gasped at the sight of it. The just appearing moonlight shone down most bright and illuminated the tall, thick, green grass.

Aydine dismounted, so I did the same.

"We will pitch camp here tonight. And then tomorrow we will reach the beautiful city of Beacoupe!" he exclaimed, sounding excited.

I supposed that Beacoupe must be quite an attraction for the residents of this place.

We laid out the bedroll and pillow again and built a fire. I was starved after not eating since breakfast.

Aydine produced some potatos, and a round of cheese. He also laid out some of the stale rolls. Then he unwrapped a chunky looking little package. It contained what appeared to be cured meat, or perhaps dried meat. I couldn't tell.

"I've been saving this," he explained. "For tonight. I thought we'd eat a bit more fancy, and have the rest of the rations since we will be buying more supplies in Beacoupe."

I smiled. "Sounds delicious!"

"I hope so. Let's put this water on to boil. I'm going to go fill the canteens with water, because there is no place to stop for water after to depart from here. And I want you to go along just incase...something...from the woods comes out here after you," Aydine said.

He poured the last of the canteen water that we had into the pot and hung it over the fire on the thick branches he'd drove into the ground.

I stuck close by him as we ventured into the dim forest. It turned out that it wasn't too far to the creek, but I appriciated being with Aydine as opposed to being alone back at camp.

When we returned the water was boiling.

Aydine put the potatos in the pot and sat down to wait.

Once the potatos were softened and cooked all the way, he took them off the fire, and drained the water into a wooden bowl. He set the pot on a rock, and found a large stone and put it in the wooden bowl and washed it.

Then he mashed the potatos and used his knife to shave off some cheese from the round, and then he placed the pot over the fire again and stirred it constantly with a wooden spoon.

Once the cheese was melted into the potatos, he placed the pot on the rock again and washed the meat in the wooden bowl of water. He placed the cleaned meat on the packing and poured out the water. He spooned the mashed potatos into the bowl, and then poured some of the canteen water into the pot.

He sloshed it around and dumped it, and put it over the fire again. He threw in the meat, which sizzled almost instantly.

After the meat was cooked and placed on wooden plates, he toasted the rolls and portioned out our dinner.

The potatos were better than I expected. The cheese took out some of the blandness from lack of salt. Perhaps Aydine knew that. The meat was salty from curing, but the washing had reduced this and it tasted almost like fresh meat, but not quite. Again, perhaps he knew this.

After our bellies were filled, we headed for the bedroll. It was a bit more cushiony tonight, with it laying on the soft grass.

Listening to the steady pace of Aydine breathing next to me I fell asleep much faster tonight. I had dreams of the party. It was like a video on repeat. 


	4. Chapter 4

I woke up to the smell of toasting rolls. To be exact, stale rolls.

Aydine was sitting with his back turned, tending the rolls over the fire.

I smiled at this. "Morning," I said, standing.

He looked back at me and said, "Good morning. Did you sleep good?"

I took a seat beside him. "I guess I slept okay."

He turned, and for the first time I saw true concern in his eyes. "Do you miss your home?"

"A little," I replied, not meeting his eyes. "But this place is wonderful, so I guess I really haven't been homesick. It feels very...familiar or something."

"Camblia is a wonderful place," Aydine said. "At least you're enjoying your time here. A lot of people wouldn't even try to make the best of it. Meanwhile, I have a bit of a tough choice t make today."

"What do you mean?" I asked quietly.

"Well, we have several routes we could take to reach Camblia City. What I can say for sure is we are quite litterly surrounded by water. Two lakes, and rivers linking them both. It acts as a giant moat for this field. That is why it is called the Field of Security. We could to up through the Arctecia Mountains, but the tribes on either side of the river are not on friendly terms and have a private and ongoing war. It would be a quick route, but it's not worth the risk. We could go up inbetwen the west Crystal River and the norther edge of Camblia Lake, but the river there is rapids, so we might get badly hurt, and end up carried into the Arctecia Mountains anyway. We do not have a boat to cross the lake either. There is a very long way to the south, across the River of Destiny, but we do not have such time, although it would be a marvelous tour of Camblia's southern and eastern edge. I think our safest bet is crossing the River of Destiny at Camblia Lake's southern edge, and continuing across the Frozen Beach of Camblia, although that's even colder than the Arctecia Mountains. Stopping in Frozen Township, and then on to the castle. By the way, the south eastern side of Camblia Lake is frozen. Well, the land surrounding. The sheet of ice over Camblia Lake is too thin to safely carry horses, or really people either. On the west and east parts it is warm and very beachy, although there is not a town on the western side. There is one on the eastern side. It is a popular summer spot. Shore Cove. Anyhow, it will be very cold crossing the Frozen Beach of Camblia. But it's also the fastest safe way. Do you think you can handle it?" he asked looking seriously at me.

"Yes, but I don't think either of us has much choice given the selection of routes," I said, wrinkling my forehead, and looking down.

He glaced away and nodded. "Yes, and we've got to keep moving anyhow. If you were summoned by Helaria, the worst thing we can do is stay stationary. And we must move quickly anyway," he said, sounding concerned. "You should know, that if you were summoned, a group of several large wolflike creatures will come to seize you and take you to the Darklands to Helaria's Castle. Wherever you were placed - so to speak - they will go to find you. If you are not there, they track you," he said grimly. "And whoever, if anyone, was involved in helping you escape...well, if they are female, they are raped and killed, and if they are male they are eaten. Alive," he said.

I gasped. The risk he was taking!

"Aydine! Why would you risk such a thing? How could you? That would be too much to live with if you got killed on my behalf!" I raved.

He shook his head and waved off my protests. "I would have felt bad to leave anyone to die. And it's my duty to Camblia mostly," he said.

I nodded. It wasn't as much for me as it was for Camblia...I guess I couldn't expect him to really want to go out of the way for me. After all, he didn't know me, and it wasn't his place to help me personally...it was for his country.

He finished with the rolls and handed me one, and stood up to take care of the horses as he ate his.

I ate sitting where I was next to the dying fire. I looked up at the early morning sun, just broken over the horizon over the field.

A gentle wind was blowing and the green grass looked like an emerald ocean with light waves rolling across it.

The air was clean, and easy to breath. It really was a wonderful place.

"Alice, can you pack up the bedroll and pillow?" asked Aydine, breaking my thoughts. "There is rope next to it to tie it with," he said.

"Sure," I said, and washed down the last of my roll with the last of the first canteen's water. I rolled the bedroll, and laid the pillow atop it, and wrapped the rope twice around and knotted it.

I took it over to Aydine, who was strapping other items on Ember. "Thanks," he said smiling and taking the roll and tying it onto Ember.

I picked up the bridles and figured I could assist further. I bridled Thunderhead and Cobalt who both reguarded me cheerfully. They seemed energized from the night's rest.

Once Aydine finished packing up, he kicked dirt over the fire, and thanked me for bridling the horses.

He gave me a leg up, and then mounted Thunderhead, and he looked around a bit and chose a direction.

I didn't understand how he knew where he was going in this mass of green. I trusted him though. All you could see in any direction was tall, dark green grass.

After a while, I noticed that the horses were walking along what appeared to be some sort of path. The grass was broken and pushed down ahead and Aydine seemed to be following his path.

At midday a few birds were sighted above us, but otherwise things were uneventful. When suddenly as we were passing under some magnolia trees, a blue jay swooped down and ambushed Ember, hitting him on his poll.

Ember was taken by surprise and he bolted away, bucking and thrashing about through the field

In his fit, I saw some of the gear flying off his back.

"Ember!" yelled Aydine.

But Ember wasn't listening. Just like his namesake, and his color, he was fiery and spirited with a mind of his own, and right now he had his own agenda to rebel against whatever had attacked him.

Cobalt looked onto the scene with interest but wasn't enticed to join in the romp.

Thunderhead snorted and pawed though, almost seeming angry at the nonsense.

Aydine cued Thunderhead into a gallop after Ember.

Unsure of what to do in this situation, I kept Cobalt still. He lowered his head to graze, as if to say "I've seen enough of this stuff!" In the distance, Aydine and Thunderhead were still in pursuit of the uncontrollable stallion.

Then, suddenly, Aydine looked like he was falling off the side of Thunderhead. But he was hanging onto Thunderhead's neck by his legs and he had taken ahold of Ember's halter.

They stopped, and came back at a lively trot. Ember looked annoyed that his fit had been interruped, and Aydine looked annoyed that it happened.

He halted and dismounted. "See what you did Ember?" he said pointing to the scattered luggage in the field.

Ember hung his head and sighed. Aydine was flushed with anger.

I laughed at the scene. Aydine looked at me strangely, and then began to laugh himself. "I'll help you get everything back together," I said.

Working together, it didn't take very long. Some remaining rolls had been trampled by Embers thrashing hooves, but nothing else was broken. The bedroll had hoofprints in it though!

Once Ember was once again loaded, we set off again in our previous direction.

"Water?" he offered a few minutes back into the ride.

"Sure," I said, grateful for refreshment. "Thanks."

"Ember is only three years old," Aydine said after a few minutes of silence. "so he's still pretty fiesty. He doesn't listen as well as Thunderhead and Cobalt. Although Cobalt is only six, he is very reserved and wise. There is something different about him to me - always has been. He is smarter than the others, and they are just about genius, so if that's any indication of his intelligence. And Thunderhead is twelve, and he is one of the oldest of my stallions. He is very wise and no nonsense as you may have seen."

I smiled and petted Cobalt. "Cobalt is wonderful. I've ridden some nice horses in my day, but I've never seen anything like him."

Aydine smiled. "And you'll never see another one like him!"

We picked up a canter now.

After a few strides, Aydine looked over. "Want to gallop?" he said.

I nodded. We cued them and they sprang into a flying pace that I wondered how they could produce and retain as long as they did, but it was a thrilling rush and I loved how it made me feel.

With the wind in my face and Cobalt under me, I forgot all about home for the time being.

But as we drew the horses up a few minutes later, I remebered what this trip was all about again, and it dampened my mood a bit.

Aydine pointed into the distance. "Do you see the horizon? You can barely see the towers of Beacoupe City just now."

I squinted to barely see what looked like a bump in the gradd, and nodded. "I see!"

Aydine nodded and smiled. "Let's go!"

Thunderhead leapt into a gallop again, and Cobalt followed him.

We lagged behind for only a second, and Cobalt easily kept pace with Thunderhead.

Ember tried to run ahead of the two stallions suddenly.

"Let's loosen up the reins and let them race!" called Aydine over the thundering hooves.

I grinned. "Alright!"

Soon as I loosed the reins, Cobalt knew what was going on. Thunderhead and Cobalt I could have swore looked at each other as if to say, "Let's show this kid a lesson!" and they, in harmony, burst into a pace still faster than they had been travelling in. Ember sped up to get ahead.

But then they slowed down! Ember gained ground quickly and got at least twenty horse lengths in the lead! Were they just going to let him win?

As if to answer my question, Cobalt and Thunderhead suddenly threw themselves foward into a gallop so fast that I got tunnel vision! They gained on Ember in what seemed like a second. They flew past with a WOOSH!

Ember pushed himself faster, but was not able to overtake the other two stallions. Aydine reined in Thunderhead, and I did the same with Cobalt.

Ember slid to a stop, almost upsetting his cargo again.

"Look," Aydine said, smiling.

I gasped. We were still a bit far, but now I could see the city better. It had a aurora that glowed a white-gold. "How beautiful," I said. "How does it glow?"

Aydine urged Thunderhead into a brisk walk, and smiled. "In the stones of the buildings, there are pigments of white gold. A magical sort. They come from the caverns and rocks from Roseland - the enchanted forest I told you about I believe. Roseland contains the most magic of anywhere in Camblia. Infact, it is the source of all magic in Camblia, really. It's full of fairies, and other mythical creatures. It boarders Kheroshetyne. Helaria doesn't enter it though, because the only magic Roseland contains is light magic. She cannot use any light magic - only the dark power I spoke of earlier. And still, not many know about the dark power, and nobody really knows anything about it."

As the sun began to set, the glow became even more brillant, as it reflected the setting sun.

Just the sun disappeared behind the horizon, we came into the city.

Without street lamps, the streets were illuminated. There were many people milling around the street, who made their way around us. There were plenty of other horses and carts as well.

Shortly, we halted in front of a grand looking building. It said 'Le' Hotel Beacoupe', so I assumed this was where we'd stay the night.

We hitched the horses outside the hotel, and went inside.

A man at the desk, with an odd, very pointy mustache, who resembled a french butler, waved us over the the desk through the crowded lobby.

"Monsouir Aydine!" he exclaimed. "What you do in Beacoupe? Who is the lady?" he asked enthusiatstically. His "the" sounded like "zee".

"We are on the way to the Castle - long story! This is my friend Alice," Aydine said smiling.

"Oh, just friend eh? I thought sure you would get first girl who come by to be girlfriend! You not see many ladies out there. Not even a mare! You stay with the stallions too much, Aydine. You take pretty girl on date in the hotel resturant tonight - no charge!" the man said bowing dramatically.

"Ah...sure," Aydine said blushing heavily, rubbing the back of his neck.

The man scribbled something down on some papers and then handed Aydine one of the papers, and a key.

He muttered something in french loudly across the lobby, and a boy came over. "You get Somme to help with luggage. And show this note to your waiter tonight. Here is your room - it is the best avaliable," he said, bowing again.

Somme smiled. He obviously didn't know english though.

The boy carried our things upstairs cheerfully, but wouldn't leave until Aydine tipped him!

I laid out on the big, elaborate bed and stretched.

"I'm sorry about that man. His name is Amontine. He breeds his mares with my stallions every other year, and is rather...uh, fond of me as you can see. He is always making jokes about me needing a girlfriend," he said looking towards the window, but not at me. "I accepted the dinner offer, because I figured a free dinner wouldn't hurt, and I hate to turn him down on anything, because the man has a rather bad temper that you don't want to set off."

I nodded and smiled. "It's alright. I'm starved. Can we go on our date now?" I asked, teasing.

He blushed so hard I was almost sorry for saying it.

"Yes, we can go," he said smiling, but not making eye contact.

Heading down the crowded hall, we made our way to the dining room. Waiters were running around madly.

One zipped over to us immediately. "Table for two?" he asked, bowing. Aydine nodded.

He seated us by a window. There was a candle on the table, and a gold napkin with gold utensils.

Someone was playing the piano softly in the corner.

It was all very relaxing. The waiter returned with a golden colored drink to fill out glasses with. It glowed like the city!

"It's a juice, made from golden apples. It is a classic drink in this city. It's said to work wonders on body, soul, and mind, since after all, it comes from an enchanted forest," Aydine explained, seeing how I hesitated to drink it.

I smiled and took a sip. It was sweet, and very fresh tasting. But there was a difference in it than the apple juice I was used to drinking. It was...energizing!

The waiter returned to us. "The special tonight is chicken on the grill, with alfredo sauce and pasta," he informed us.

An Itallian dish in a French-like setting? Of course, magic apple juice wasn't French either.

"I'll have that," I said.

"Me too," said Aydine smiling.

The waiter bowed, and hurried away.

"Where are we headed tomorrow?" I asked, trying to make things less awkward in the stiff enviorment.

"Nowhere," Aydine replied smiling. "We must make haste, but we can't kill ourselves. And we are a day ahead too. I want to show you this city. Then the next day, we will head for the mouth of the River of Destiny. We will sleep before crossing it."

I smiled. A day of rest sounded good. I wanted to see this beautiful place anyway, in full.

The waiter served our dishes promptly. It was divine! Along with the pasta and chicken, he brought a basket of breadsticks. I ended up eating three! Aydine's stale rolls were okay, even stale, but these breadsticks sure beat them, slathered in butter with a touch of garlic.

I was getting sleepy by the time we were finished eating, and I think Aydine noticed, or maybe he was tired too. He summoned the waiter, and handed him the note and a tip. The waiter smiled, bowed, and thanked Aydine graciously. Then we returned to our room.

I inspected the bathroom here, and Aydine showed me how to fill the tub...you had to pump the water into it! It was warm though. Aydine said the city sat on a natural hot spring, so everyone had hot water here.

I spent a good twenty minutes bathing. It felt so wonderful to be clean. I put back on my clothes and rejoined Aydine, who was reading a book from the small library in our room.

"If you'd like, you can borrow a pair of my clothes tonight, and wash those you have on."

I smiled and nodded. "That would be nice. Thank you."

I changed into the clothes he provided, and washed my old clothes, wrung them out, and Aydine helped me hang mine to dry.

I laid down on the bed beside him. It felt like a cloud, or maybe it was just because I had been used to the hard bedroll for about three days now.

Laying on the soft, warm bed, I fell asleep without meaning to. The sleep was deep, and much needed. 


	5. Chapter 5

I awoke to a chilly breeze on my face. I opened my eyes, and at first thought we were camping out again. Then I realized, the window of our hotel room was open. Aydine must have opened it before he fell asleep. It wasn't storming, just bad wind. I got up to close the window.

When I turned around Aydine was just sitting up.

"Is it storming?"

I shook my head. "Just bad wind."

"Oh, good. I'd hate it if today got ruined by the weather. You'll love Beacoupe!" he said, excitedly. I was glad that he seemed to be warming up to me. I'd tried hard to get his friendship, even if it was only going to be for a short time.

"You fell asleep pretty fast last night. I, ah, pulled the covers over you," Aydine said, a little shyly.

He got off the bed and began to cram his feet into his boots.

My clothes weren't quite dry yet, so I left them hanging and wore his, although they didn't look quite right with my Converses.

We ran out into the hall, which was already crowded. We almost escaped out the door when we heard a familiar voice. I thought I saw Aydine cringe.

"Yoo-hoo! Aydine!" called Mr. Amontine.

We walked over. "Monsouir! Your evening was satisfactory I hope," he said, bowing dramatically as I expected.

Aydine nodded in reply.

"And where are you travelling today?" he asked

Sure is nosey, I thought to myself.

"I'm showing Alice the city," Aydine informed him.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, far too enthusiastically. "She will love it! You show her the Fountain of Dreams, no?"

Aydine nodded.

"I shall not keep you, off with you two!" he said, shooing us away.

Once we were outside, I made a gagging noise. "Nosey and obnoxious!" I exclaimed, biting my lip after I said it. I thought I'd seen Aydine cringe, but I wasn't sure how he felt about Mr. Amontine, and I didn't want to insult him.

To my relief, he laughed. "He's alot to put up with, but if you stay on his good side, you can get his good side. He's very generous. Maybe we'll get another free dinner tonight for enduring him this morning," Aydine joked.

"So where do we go first?" I asked looking around in the crowded street.

"The hotel's stables," he said. "Horses."

I blushed and nodded. I'd forgotten the horses.

We walked around the back through a way that reminded me of an ally. There was a small, but nice pasture with a barn directly behind it.

We entered it, and I was nearly shocked. The place was clean as a house!

A groom rushed up to us. "What room?" he asked.

"Four fifty-nine," Aydine said.

The groom bowed, and led us to the horses. "Which horses should I tack?" he inquired.

"The black and grey stallions, please." Aydine told him.

"Yes, sir!" the groom said, and rushed off.

When he returned a moment later, he looked puzzled.

"I apologize sir, you seem to have only bridles, and I see no saddles for these horses," he said, looking quite worried. Apparently he'd had some bad reactions to unfound tack before.

"No need to apologize," Aydine said. "That's all we ride these horses in."

"Oh," the groom said. "I shall bridle them for you then!"

Well, it was more then bridling. The groom spent some time brushing and polishing them. They nearly sparked when he finally bridled them!

"Which is the lady's horse, sir?" he asked politely.

"The black one," Aydine replied.

"You are sure sir? He is very large and spirited looking!" the groom said, surprised.

"She is a skilled rider. She can handle him," Aydine said.

"Very good, sir," the groom replied. He handed the reins to me and I patted Cobalt, who seemed happy to see me.

He handed Thunderhead's reins to Aydine and we led them outside.

The groom insisted to help me mount, so I let him. Aydine mounted himself while the groom was helping me. I had a feeling Aydine didn't want the groom helping him!

We thanked the groom, and rode out into the busy street.

"The first place we will go is the market. In Beacoupe, they raise the prices as the day goes on. What's selling the most is priced higher. The merchants here are very sly," Aydine said.

We rode up the main road a bit, and took a left turn onto a road that for as far as I could see, was tents and stands.

We rode down.

Aydine suddenly got a funny look on his face.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I forgot to make a list," he said rolling his eyes.

"We need food," I pointed out.

He smiled. "Food...I guess we'll just visit all the stands and figure out everything we need."

It seemed overwhelming to me at first. The first stand we visited was selling food. The one item we knew we needed.

We picked out some cured meats, more rolls, rice, potatos, and grits. A small jar of salt to serve us seasoning, and another roll of cheese. He packed all this in a sack he'd brought. He bought a couple of apples, and handed me one. "Breakfast," he said, biting into his.

We travelled over to another promising looking stand, which was selling knives and swords. I wondered why he was here, he had a large collection of knives.

He purchased a very beautiful daggar, with a white-gold looking handle, and a sword with the same white-gold sheen, except the white-gold was on the blade as well.

He handed me the daggar. "Protection," he said smiling. "If I should ever fail you, and not be near you in danger."

I smiled. He put the sword on by it's leather strap.

It looked...well, natural on him!

We travelled a few tables down. Here they were selling fabrics and cloth and such. He talked to the clerk a moment, and returned to I and the horses with a brown package. I figured it was blankets, because it was thick and bulky, and we were supposed to be headed to a frozen beach soon.

We looked at some more shops, not seeing anything of real interest.

As we were about to leave, we heard a commotion just a little farther down the street.

"Kill it!" we heard a man's voice ring out.

We rode down through a mass of curious people to see what was going on.

A Great Dane sized, grey and black wolf-type dog was standing in front of a mass of police aiming swords at him. He growled, but cowered in fear.

"Stop!" Aydine yelled, jumping off Thunderhead.

"Why are you killing him?" he asked.

The policemen laughed. One spoke up. "He is the biggest theif in town young man! He is a stray and has caused nothing but trouble ever since he was sighted around here."

"Don't kill him! I will take him!" Aydine offered.

The policeman raised an eyebrow. "He has commited crimes that a dog cannot repay, boy. He will die for them, too!"

Aydine shook his head. "It's not right. I will pay you for his life," he said. The crowd buzzed at this.

The policeman laughed in a cruel way. "You will have to offer me a great sum of money for his life!"

"A hundred pounds!" said Aydine. The crowd buzzed loudly at this.

"A hundred pounds for the life of a theif?" another policeman exclaimed. Aydine nodded.

"I will take that offer," said the other policeman. "As long as you keep him out of trouble, away from these shops, otherwise, your money is wasted and we will take his life from him next time!"

Aydine nodded, paid the man, and tied a rope to the dog, who growled and reguarded Aydine suspiciously.

Once out of earshot of the crowd and policemen, I turned and looked at him.

"Where do you get all this money you spend?" I questioned him.

"I save it," he replied. "I breed my stallions every year, and people pay alot for it. I have nowhere to really spend it. So it piles up."

I nodded. "That was nice, what you did for that dog," I said.

Aydine smiled. "A life is a life, human, animal, divine, or creature. Some deserve to die, but most deserve a second chance."

We rode on in silence. Suddenly, Aydine said, "Oh! I haven't even begun to show you the city yet!" he said, blushing.

He turned back out on to the main road, left, and headed deeper into the city.

Atop Cobalt, I could see above the people, and I could just make out what looked like a fountain. This must be the Fountain of Dreams, I thought.

Shortly, we reached it. It didn't just glow like the city. Whatever the white-gold substance was, this was the solid form of it I could tell. It was encrested in jewels of all sorts. The water seemed to radiate the same white-gold glow.

"They say," Aydine said, noticing my gaze, "that all dreams ever had become trapped in this water. They say, without the fountain, all dreams would cease. If you throw a coin into it, a dream will come true," he said, placing a coin in my hand.

I smiled. I rode Cobalt up to the side of it. I tossed the coin, which landed with a splash.

"Don't people try to steal the coins? I asked.

"No. It is also said, that anyone who steals from the fountain will have nightmares for the rest of his life, and those nightmares will come true. Nobody wants to find out, so they leave them."

I smiled. We rode on. We toured the entire city, looking into the windows of expensive looking shops, and just as the sun was setting, saw the sight of the city as it glowed in the sun's dying light. It was beautiful.

Heading back to the hotel, the groom took our horses soon as we arrived, so we went inside with our bags, and the big dog.

"I'm not sure what Amontine will say about him," said Aydine. "You make a run with him upstairs while I distract him!"

We slipped in the door, and I made a bolt for the stairs. The big dog kept pace with me easily, and with a few disapproving looks from some guests, we made it into the room safely.

In about fifteen minutes, Aydine came in, looking flustered.

He shook his head. "I made the mistake of asking him about last year's foals. Now I've got him talking about next year's!"

We looked at each other for a moment, then burst out laughing.

The big dog eyed us suspicously. "What will we call him?" I asked.

Aydine inspected him. "Lucky?" he said.

"That's so classic!" I said rolling my eyes.

Aydine shrugged. "He was found in a golden city, and he's pretty lucky we were there. I'd say hes very Lucky!" he said

I laughed. "Lucky," I said. The big dog didn't pay me much attention, but I figured he'd learn it in time.

Aydine put down the bags, and turned on the oil lamp.

"We're getting free dinner again," he said with a grin.

"I'm starved!" I said, making a face.

"So am I," Aydine said.

We headed for the door. The dog looked after us with curiosity.

We headed down the crowded hall again, and made our way to the dining room. Tonight, a waiter hurried over just like the last, and bowed and seated us.

Tonight the special was a chicken dish which I didn't totally understand the name of, but I got it because I knew I liked chicken.

Aydine ordered the same. We chatted over the golden apple juice. It was just as good, if not better than I remembered it.

The night was going relativly peaceful, and we had just finished our chicken dishes, when Amontine came hurrying through the resturant towards us.

He didn't look happy. My stomache twisted in knot. Somehow I knew that he'd found out about Lucky, and I had a feeling he didn't like dogs.

"Monsouir," he said, curtly. "I have received complaints from various guests that you bring dog into hotel! Big dog! Is this true?" he said, hands on hips.

"I, uh," Aydine stuttered. "The police were going to kill him, so I bought him to save his life," he explained.

"Well," Amontine said, "you will put him out! Or I will put you out! You hear?"

Aydine blushed.

I felt bad for Aydine, and angry at Amontine. Without thinking, I jumped up from my seat.

"You arrogant French bastard! How dare you treat him like that? How many times have you bred your mares to his stallions, and received great profit from the foals? How many times has he held his tongue and put up with your obnoxious personallity? How dare you threaten to throw him out of your hotel! It's stuffy and stuck up, and we'd be better off out on the grass anyway!" I yelled at him. I picked up my glass, half full of juice, and threw the remains in his face.

We had attracted quite a bit of attention from the resturants waiters and customers.

I started to leave. "Let's go Aydine," I said. Aydine's mouth gaped open as he involuntarily stood to leave. Monsouir Amontine looked like he might explode any moment.

When we got up to the room, we quickly gathered our belongings, and figuring we wouldn't get any help with the luggage this time, we took it down stairs, and tried to sneak out quietly.

Fortunately, Amontine was still washing up from the juice incident. We left and went out back to get the horses. The grooms disappeared quickly when they saw us coming - word got around fast here, apparently.

I wasn't sure about what I'd gotten myself into, because Aydine hadn't yet spoken to me. We got the horse's bridles, and loaded up Ember. As we left, Aydine smiled. "You're very brave, Alice. I've been around him for ages and been scared to even breathe wrong. Thank you for standing up for me," he said.

I laid a hand on his shoulder. "It was nothing!"

We rode out of the city, and rode off into the field a ways before stopping for the night.

Aydine built a fire, and rummaged in his sack and produced a bottle.

"We got something out of that hotel at least!" he said.

"What's that?" I asked.

"Golden apple cider," he said smiling.

"What? Where...how did you get those?" I said, jaw dropping.

"They were in a tub of ice near the entrance to the resturant. I grabbed them when Amontine and the waiters weren't looking when we walked out."

I smiled. He was sly, and very observant.

He got up and started to get out the bedroll, so I helped him.

He brought the thick package over to where I was sitting, and opened it.

"I thought you might want some different clothes...you're not exactly dressed like folks here dress," he said, blushing. "No offense."

"None taken," I said. "You don't dress like we do either!"

He produced a maroon color shirt with a few small close-together buttons at the top of my chest. It was long sleeved but light and comfortable. The pants were much like Aydine's, perhaps a little darker. He also had purchased some boots for me - knee high and furry. They were laced with rawhide strings. There was also a dark purple, almost black cape with a hood. It was thick and heavy and looked expensive.

I felt bad for Aydine spending so much of his money on me, but I supposed if he never used it anyway, he probably enjoyed spending it on something, even me.

But also, he had a thick, knee-long, dark red coat, which had black and white fur around the hood, sleeves and tail.

"I know it looks like a lot, but you'll be glad you're dressed in all this when we reach the beach," he said.

"Turn your back, and I'll try it on," I said.

He turned away, and I changed into the outfit. There was one tie left, and I wasn't sure what he meant it for.

"Okay!" I said.

He smiled. "That's different," he said. "I like it better." He looked me over a moment. "Come here a second," he said.

I sat beside him. He ran his fingers through my hair, and tied it into a loose ponytail, and then tied the strip of cloth around my head like a headband.

I felt a bit like a ninja!

"It will keep most of the hair out of your face...well, aside from a few pieces. So you won't look too slicked back...but it still looks pretty, and it's not too tight so it's comfortable," he explained.

I smiled. "So you think it looks pretty?"

He shrugged and blushed. "Well, I," he said hesitating. "You know...it doesn't make you look unattractive."

I laughed. I felt bad for laughing at him, but I couldn't help it.

Lucky eyed us untrustingly still, but wasn't growling.

We eventually fell asleep in the grass, not even bothering with the bedroll. Dead tired. 


End file.
